You Told Us is a regular feature where we highlight comments from users in the communities DNAinfo covers.
UPPER EAST SIDE — Locals are calling the city's newly installed LinkNYC kiosks a nuisance that's clogging up sidewalks with encampments and drug deals.
Residents have complained about the density and size of the 9-foot-6 kiosks, which were installed where public pay phones used to be along Third Avenue on the east side and along Eighth Avenue and parts of Broadway on the west.
The machines, which offer free access to Wi-Fi, phones, phone chargers and internet browsers, have drawn users who camp out on the sidewalks to plug into them, residents said. Some locals have also complained of there being too many kiosks on a single block, and of drug deals happening in front of them.
In response to DNAinfo's story about the complaints, readers emailed and posted to Neighborhood Square to voice their own experiences.
► One reader, who lives in Chelsea, emailed saying she saw a man licking a kiosk screen at Eighth Avenue and 2nd Street on her walk home from work.
► A Gramercy resident wrote in an email that she's seen people gathered, sometimes in groups, either plugged in or staring at the screen at almost every kiosk she passes on Third Avenue, between 14th and 23rd streets.
► "It's baffling why they can't lower speaker volume and brightness to about 50% maximum after, say, 1AM? I have called multiple times to complain, sometimes at 4AM when I'm woken to the glorious sounds of some gritty Trap video. If you live near one of these, they light up your homes, as you can tell from my above complaint. Not to mention what the others have mentioned, they should call these Homeless Twerk Video station, that's all they're used for. As ilivehere said, someone got a nice payday," one reader wrote on Neighborhood Square.
► "The kiosks don't even have solar panels or other means to provide minimal emergency service during an extended blackout. According to the LinkNYC rep at the meeting, the kiosks' battery back-up lasts "up to a day". (Rather less, presumably, if everyone plugs in.) But even the old phone booths generally worked indefinitely during a blackout. So much for robust post-Sandy emergency planning," another said.
► "Everyday and I mean EVERYDAY I come out my building to find the (2) kiosks on my corner (125 st) are always plagued by bums and junkies. They even place crates, chairs and magazine boxes to sit & sleep on while they entertain themselves with movies & music which means the working class people, who pay taxes & may want to use cannot or will not after seeing what's been on it all day & night..If they cannot be monitored properly then they should take them down," one reader wrote.
► "So stupid that it has to be cronyism. Whose cousin got the contract to install these monsters?" another said.
► "I think the majority of you complaining about bums using the LinkNYC really need to STFU. You ought to be grateful you have a roof over your head & don't have to resort to this. Leave people alone & let them be because you never know, tomorrow it could happen to you," another commenter said.
